Be it enterprise or desktop use, the big fight between proprietary software promoter Microsoft and open-source champion Red Hat looks set to be over language and localisation.

Red Hat, which claims ?95 per cent? market share in the Linux-based server segment in India, launched version 4 of the Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) software in Bengali on Tuesday.

?We had committed to the West Bengal government last year that we would be ready with the Bengali version in a year and we have fulfilled the promise,? said Sachin Dabir, head (enterprise sales) for Red Hat India.

The state government, despite several rounds of discussions with Red Hat and Microsoft for projects including e-governance, is yet to commit to either of the companies.

Microsoft has signed memorandums of understanding with the government and recently previewed Bengali Windows and Office software.

Open-source software?s advantages over proprietary software include the option for developers other than the manufacturer to change the software as required from source.

?The West Bengal government has shown a lot of interest in Linux. Some government-controlled bodies, like the pollution control board and the state electricity board, are successfully using RHEL,? observed Dabir.

RHEL4 offers five Indian language options ? Bengali, Hindi, Gujarati, Tamil and Punjabi ? and 10 international languages. Besides, there is emphasis on security, subscription policy and better compatibility with plug-and-play devices than before.

?For improved security, there is a role-based access feature which allows only the designated person to access a section of data. Also, users migrating from 32-bit to 64-bit systems can avail of the same subscription plan. Further, for each version of our software, we have increased support from five to seven years,? Dabir explained.

Red Hat is targeting desktop users now. ?This includes technical workstation users such as chip designers, application workers like bank-teller machines, and knowledge workers like those using office automation, browsing and emailing,? added Dabir.